Toothbrush

ABSTRACT

A toothbrush has an elongate handle and one brushing head. The brushing head is bent at a 90° angle relative to the handle. The bristles project from the brush head parallel to the gripping surface of the handle. The angle enables ease of access to the lingual surfaces of all teeth, especially the anterior teeth. The 90° angle also permits access to effectively clean the distal surfaces of teeth as well as the lingual surfaces of teeth and implants possessing any amount of gingival recession.

90° Toothbrush Handles

The 90° angle of this brush handle will permit greater access to the lingual surfaces of teeth that are hard to clean properly for most individuals.

BACKGROUND OF INVENTION

The invention relates to a toothbrush.

All dentate individuals need to brush their teeth in Order to minimize the harmful effects of plaque and calculus build-up in one's mouth. It is crucial to minimize the amount of plaque and calculus in one's mouth in order to reduce the bacterial load thus reducing the severity of gingivitis, periodontitis, and implantitis. Reducing these oral diseases has been proven to be important as there is a strong correlation between oral diseases and heart disease, diabetes, joint replacement failure, and preterm birth.

Despite regular toothbrushing, individuals typically spend more time cleaning the buccal or facial surfaces of their teeth as these surfaces are most easily reached with a standard toothbrush. As well, more time is spent on the exterior areas because it is what other individuals see. Therefore, often the lingual and palatal surfaces of teeth are neglected resulting in excessive plaque and calculus accumulation.

Toothbrushes are used world-wide to clean teeth in order to promote the health of both the teeth and gum structure in the mouth. Many different types of toothbrushes and oral hygiene aids exist in order to reach all areas of one's mouth, however continuous improvement in the types of aids is required to facilitate one's oral health through effective homecare. Examples of existing oral health care aids are as follows:

-   -   Proxabrush     -   End-tuft brush     -   Sulcabrush: U.S. Pat. No. 4,679,272

These listed oral health care aids target different areas of the mouth and of one's teeth. The Proxabrush targets the interproximal surfaces of teeth as well as aids in cleaning under braces wires. The End-tuft brush is idea for hard-to-reach areas including the facial surfaces of molars and in locations where teeth overlap creating too small of a space to be reached by a standard toothbrush. The Sulcabrush is perfect for cleaning in furcations of molar teeth as Well as can be used to better clean around the gum line of lingual and facial surfaces. Despite these tools there is continual need for improvement as no two mouths are the same and each mouth cannot be effectively cleaned using all of the same tools. Currently, there is no brush that specifically targets the lingual aspects of all teeth.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

This brush is similar to other brushes in that it is comprised of a plastic handle with bristles on one far end of the handle. The bristled end of the brush is bent at a 90° angle to the handle. The bristles are angled towards the handle and point parallel to the handle. This 90° bend occurs on the shaft of the handle approximately 30 mm from the end. The remaining handle is straight.

The toothbrush of this invention has bristles that are pointing directly towards the lingual surfaces of the teeth when the brush handle is held parallel to the ground. This will ensure a direct application of the bristles to the lingual tooth surfaces and will ensure that these difficult areas will be targeted during one's homecare routine.

The brush can be moved using the currently accepted modified bass brushing technique by jiggling the brush at the gingival margin prior to completing a swishing motion away from the cervical margin.

Additionally, the brush can be used to access the distal surfaces of teeth. When a tooth is removed and a space remains, it is challenging to clean the distal surface of the tooth in front of the space. The 90° angle of the brush will permit easy access to these challenging distal surfaces.

Directly targeting these lingual surfaces and hard-to-reach distal surfaces and will permit a reduction in plaque and calculus accumulation thus decreasing their effects and the severity of bleeding gums, gingivitis, periodontitis, and even implantitis and therefore greatly decrease one's oral bacterial load.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The following descriptions are in reference to the accompanying drawings in order to clarify the preferred use of the invention:

FIG. 1 shows a top view of the toothbrush of the present invention having a smaller set of bristles.

FIG. 2 shows a side view of the toothbrush in FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 shows a side view of the toothbrush of the present invention having a full set of bristles.

FIG. 4 shows a perspective view of the teeth in one arch showing the lingual use of the toothbrush in the area of tooth 31 from FIG. 1 or FIG. 3.

FIG. 5 shows a cross-section of the teeth in one arch demonstrating the use of the toothbrush of the present invention in an alternative use at the distal of tooth 44.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, the toothbrush of the present invention is denoted by reference 1. Toothbrush 1 has a flat handle (2.) where the neck of the handle becomes skinnier prior to the 90° bend (3.).

The handle 2 is of standard toothbrush diameter, approximately 11 mm. Along the highest portion of the handle, closest to the narrowing of the handle to approximately 6 mm, is gripping surface (4.) with alternating ridges and groves. These ridges and groves extend for approximately 35 mm on the top, wide surface of the handle. The wide brush handle extends for a total of 105 mm. The overall top and bottom surfaces of both the wide and skinny portions of the handle are flat with no curves.

The narrower portion of the handle, denoted by reference 5, becomes skinnier 40 mm prior to the 90° bend. The narrow handle is approximately 6 mm wide. After the bend, there is 30 mm until the end of the brush handle.

Both ends of the handle have a rounded tip.

The last 8 mm of narrow handle, located after the 90° bend, embodies a small group of bristles. There are 3 or 4 rows of length of bristles. There are 2 rows wide of bristles. (Reference 6.) The bristles extend straight from the brush handle. They project parallel to the narrow handle prior to the 90° bend. The bristles will be of 9 mm in length as indicated in reference 7.

The toothbrush of the current invention represented in FIG. 3 is indicated by reference 8. The wide portion of the brush handle (9.) extends for 120 mm prior to a narrowing portion. It is 13 mm wide. Located on the highest portion of the handle, closest to the narrowing portion of the, is gripping surface (10.) with alternating ridges and groves. These ridges and groves extend for approximately 30 mm on the top, wide surface of the handle. This handle (11.) is slightly curved in a horizontal “s” position that fits the hand comfortably. Additionally, the bottom of the brush is slightly rounded.

The narrowing portion of the brush is 25 mm long prior to the 90° bend. The narrow portion of the handle is approximately 6 mm wide. After the bend, there is 41 mm of handle remaining.

Both ends of the handle have a rounded tip.

The last 26 mm of the handle after the 90° bend embodies 9 rows long of bristles. There are 2 or 3 rows wide of bristles. (reference 12.) The bristles project straight out, parallel to the narrow portion of the handle (13.) after the 90° bend. The bristles are approximately 10 mm in length.

Brushes indicated by references 1 and 8 can be made out of any form of plastic, as is the convention for toothbrushes currently. Alternatively, the handle could be made from metal or any other material that would permit a 90° bend in the handle. Bristles used in the current invention can be made by standard means. Bristles should be soft, but brushes could also be made using medium or hard bristles.

Brushes indicated by references 1 and 8 should be ideally bent at a 90° angle. However, these brushes may be bent at any angle ranging from 75° to 110° in order to permit increased access to the gingival margin of the lingual and distal tooth surfaces.

FIG. 4 shows the teeth of the lower jaw. The brush is being used to access the lingual surfaces of the mandibular anterior teeth. Brush 1 is used to access the gingival margin area of the anterior tooth 41. Especially with recession, the root surfaces are difficult to access because of the amount of root exposed. The 3 rows of bristles of brush 1 as well as the 90° angle permit perfect access to the gingival margin as well as all of the lingual surfaces of the teeth. The brush can be moved in numerous ways including the modified bass brushing method which includes a jiggling followed by a sweeping motion. As well, brush 1 permits access where there is narrow root exposure that is difficult to access with a big, bulky brush.

The brush referenced in FIG. 3 can also be used on any of the lingual surfaces. When a standard brush is not adequate to reach palatal surfaces of teeth, brush 8, with its full complement of bristles can be used to brush teeth just as a standard brush would be used to clean the facial/buccal surfaces.

To clean the distal surfaces of teeth, either brush 1 or brush 8 can be used, depending on the tooth size and ease of accessibility. The brush extends over the anterior teeth as shown in FIG. 5 to reach the distal of tooth 45. Because tooth 46 is missing, there is significant plaque accumulation on distal surfaces of teeth that is not often removed adequately. The brush 8 has bristles angled at 90° that will focus on the distal surface of tooth 45 in order to remove the plaque while cleaning.

Ideally, the brush of the present invention would be used regularly by individuals who have difficulty reaching the lingual and palatal surfaces of their teeth. This suggests that the brush 8, in FIG. 3, would be used at a minimum of two times daily for both the upper and lower teeth. Brush 1 may be used as an oral health care aide to assist in accessing areas of difficulty on all lingual surfaces. This includes, but is not limited to, areas of recession, hard-to-reach areas located by the tongue or elsewhere, along implant/crown margins, distal tooth surfaces, and accessing gingival clefts.

Experience suggests that by diligently using this brush, there can be a significant reduction in plaque and calculus accumulation in areas that are often missed when brushing only with a conventional brush. By regularly cleaning these areas, one can achieve a reduction in plaque and therefore less inflammation and bleeding in the short term as Well as a decrease in bone loss in the future. If one uses this brush regularly, it should be possible to maintain or improve one's oral health. 

The embodiments of the invention in which an exclusive property or privilege is claimed are defined as follows:
 1. A toothbrush having an elongate and generally straight handle which comprises a 90° bend.
 2. A toothbrush as claimed in claim 1 consisting of the bristles located on the brushing head, the portion of which is located after the brush is bent at a 90° angle.
 3. A toothbrush as claimed in claims 1 and 2 wherein the brushing head comprises a body or handle and bristle elements secured in the body and extend outward from their secured location.
 4. A toothbrush as claimed in claims 1 and 2 compromising any type or number of bristles.
 5. A toothbrush as claimed in claims 1 and 2 wherein the central portion of the handle embodies a grip or raised surface.
 6. A toothbrush as claimed in claims 1 and 2 consisting of a handle made of any plastic or metal material.
 7. A toothbrush as claimed in claims 1 and 2 wherein the angle of the bend is anywhere from 75 to 110 degrees. 